Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Noxious Knotweed to the Rescue

During my post-cancer treatment, i go not only to the oncologist, but also to a naturopath. The naturopath suggests several supplements. The one she prescribed for me yesterday is Resveratrol, which i found in the health section of the food co-op. Here's the kicker: Resveratrol is made from Japanese knotweed!

Japanese knotweed is a loathsome invasive, growing along roadsides and streams, and crowding out native plants. My sweetie Bill, who is on our town's Conservation Commission, goes every summer month to cut down 4 patches of knotweed along nearby U.S. Route 5. It takes years of dedication to knock out a single stand of knotweed. One gardener told me a shoot of knotweed in her backyard came from a neighbor's patch, 65 feet away.

The Buddha called everyone he met "friend." Could we call everyone we meet today "Friend"? Could we call every irritating, unpleasant thing "friend"? Quakers call themselves the Society of Friends, and work toward peace in many different ways.

Yes, some friends are sneaky and underhanded. We still keep our guard up--for our own safety and for the safety of others. But we don't need to hate. We keep talking, communicating, and connecting in a friendly manner, like the Dalai Lama's attitude toward the Chinese who have tortured so many of his fellow Tibetans.

Hate only harms ourselves. Even if we are only hating Japanese knotweed. Right now, i am grateful to this particular enemy.

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About Me

Cheryl teaches at Vermont Insight Meditation Center and spends as much time in the garden as she can.
Cheryl discovered gardening the same year she attended her first retreat at Insight Meditation Society in 1977.
She has a Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology from Antioch New England, with a concentration in Mindfulness and completed an internship with Jon Kabat-Zinn’s Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program. She became a Master Gardener in 1999.
Cheryl graduated from the Community Dharma Leader program, sponsored by Spirit Rock Meditation Center and from the Integrated Study and Practice Program at the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies.
Cheryl is also the author of Following the Nez Perce Trail: A Guide to the Nee-Me-Poo National Historic Trail with eye-witness accounts, 2nd edition.